Surgeons call for end to variations in emergency surgery care

Thousands of patients who undergo emergency abdominal surgery each year are subjected to delays and poor standards of care, surgeons have warned.

A report by the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) suggests there are wide variations in the care experienced by the 170,000 patients who undergo this type of surgery each year.

The RCS says that abdominal emergencies are often not spotted quickly enough because of poor access to emergency operating theatres and scan facilities.

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According to the college, death rates among emergency surgical patients are typically in the region of 15 to 20 per cent, rising to 40 per cent among elderly patients.

However, the chances of survival can more than double, depending on the hospital.

Report author Iain Anderson, consultant general surgeon at Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, said: 'Complications and death rates vary significantly between hospital and even within the same hospital depending on the time of admission.

'Trusts should acknowledge that these problems exist and work to review their services using this guidance.'

A spokesperson for the Department of Health said that hospitals must provide the safest possible care for patients.

Hospitals should follow the guidance and ensure they are providing appropriate levels of service and staffing, the spokesperson added.

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